Burial casket liner



Oct. 3, 1950 B. J. SLAUGHTER, JR, ETI'AL 2,524,402

BURIAL CASKET LINER Filed Dec. 6, 1946 IN V EN TORS Patented Oct. 3, 1950 BURIAL CASKET LINER Bernard J. Slaughter, Jr., and Raymond W. Brown, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignors to The Crane & Breed Casket Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application December 6, 1946, Serial ,N 0. 714,384

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a burial casket liner, and pertains particularly to an inner receptacle of air-tight construction adapted for disposition Within an ornate casket.

An object of the invention is to provide a casket liner of the character referred to, the cover of which may be closed quickly and with maximum facility when the occasion requires.

Another object is to provide reliable and simple means whereby a funeral attendant may close and seal the casket liner without the risk of losing or misplacing any parts thereof necessary to the establishment of a tight and uniform seal about the periphery of the cover.

Another object is to incorporate certain structural improvements in a device of the character stated, whereby simplicity, reliability, and a reduction of manufacturing costs are realized, while at the same time enhancing the usefulness and operability of the device.

The foregoing and other objects are attained by the means described herein and illustrated upon the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of the liner or inner receptacle for a casket, the means of the invention being incorporated therein.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view in perspective, taken on line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmental cross-section taken through the screw shown at the right of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3, taken through the hinge mounting for the cover, shown at the left of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of a fastener retainer.

Inner receptacles or liners for burial caskets have beenemployed in the past, when it was considered desirable or necessary to seal in the corpse either during or subsequently to the funeral services. The liners or inner receptacles as heretofore constructed, however, were not entirely satisfactory and serviceable. In some constructions heretofore used, great care Was required in closingthe cover if a satisfactory seal 'was to be effected, and even with the exercise of skill and care the desired results were not always obtainable. Another objection to the previous types of liners, was that the fastening devices for the covers were unduly multiplied in number, so that considerable time and labor had placement of parts, such as the fastening screws,

would sometimes complicate matters and add to the difficulty of maintaining the desired solemnity and dignity of the services. For reasons such as are above recited, burial caskets with sealed inner receptacles have not enjoyed a full measure of popularity and success in the industry, and it is therefore the purpose and intent of the present invention to overcome the foregoing and other objections heretofore encountered.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1, there is illustrated a complete burial casket liner in the form of an elongated substantially rectangular receptacle having side walls 1, end Walls 8, and a bottom 9, arranged so as to be air-tight and leak-proof in character. A cover Ill is provided for closing the open top of the receptacle, and suitable individual fastening devices l2 serve to maintain the cover in sealed relationship upon the receptacle. The cover preferably is hinged to the body of the receptacle, as will be explained.

As illustrated by Fig. 2, the side walls of the receptacle may be of sheet metal, the walls preferably being inclined inwardly and upwardly as at l3 near the open top of the receptacle, so that a rim l4 may be formed thereon substantially within the maximum dimensions of the receptacle body. Rim M is made integral with the side and end walls, and extends circumferentially of the receptacle to define the open top thereof. The rim extends outwardly to provide an upper face I 5, the metal thereof being turned under and toward the receptacle opening to provicie a flange I6. The rim thereby formed may preferably accommodatea reinforcing member il in the form of a steel frame extending circumferentially of the rim. As will be understood, the reinforcing member I! may be in the form of flat metallic bars extending lengthwise and. crosswise of the receptacle body, the bars being mitered and joined at the corners of the receptacle by welding, brazing or the like. If the material of the receptacle body is of sufiicient strength and rigidity, it may be found unnecessary to weld the reinforcing frame members at their meeting ends. Moreover, if the metal of the body is sufficiently rigid, the bars or reinforcing members may be omitted entirely. Said members, when used, will rest in a horizontal plane which is common to all of them, with the result that a wide contact area 15 is furnished circumferentially of the receptacle body. The upper margins of the side and end walls may be directed upwardly as at 18 to furnish a circumferential enclosure defining the open top of the receptacle.

Between the wall l8 and the reinforcing frame H, the receptacle rim is to be depressed eircum ferentially to furnish a shallow groove l9 serving as a seat for a circumferential gasket 20. This seat and gasket arrangement will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

The cover H3 may be in the form of a metallic frame having a rim 2!, preferably though not necessarily reinforced, adapted to overlie and coincide with the rim of the receptacle body, the cover including also circumferential inwardly and downwardly directed flanges 22 defining the rectangular opening of the cover. The opening may be closed by means of a transparent plate 23 of glass or the like permitting inspection of the interior of the receptacle when the cover is closed. The transparent plate may be fixed to the cover in any suitable manner. In the embodiment illustrated, the transparent plate has its upper sur face contacting the downwardly turned edges 24 of the circumferential cover flange 22, contact being maintained by means of angle pieces 25 fixed to the inner face of the cover frame so as to abut the underface of the transparent plate. An effective seal may be established between the transparent plate and the cover frame by introducing a suitable mastic or putty material indicated at 26. As will be understood, the transparent plate extends substantially the full length of the cover and is sealed thereto against passage of air, water or other extraneous materials.

The ornate upstanding Wall 21 of the cover is at its lower end developed to form the rim 2!,

said rim comprising the outer or upper panel 28 and the inner or lower panel 29 arranged in spaced parallelism. Between the panels 28 and '29 may be fixed a reinforcing member 38 adapted to enhance the rigidity of the cover. The reinforcing member 32, like that indicated at H, ex-

tends circumferentially of the structure and s in the form of an open frame generally rectangular in form. It may be constituted of four strips of metal or other rigid material arranged with their ends in abutment at the corners of the receptacle cover, where they may be joined, if desired. The lower panel 29 of the cover preferably is flat throughout its width, thereby to provide a circumferential contacting and sealing surface 33 to cooperate with the gasket 20 and the fiat area of the receptacle rim in providing a highly effective sealed connection between the cover and the receptacle body circumferentially thereof.

It may here be observed that the gasket seating groove 49 of rim I4 extends longitudinally and in spaced parallelism with the reinforcing member if, the groove being disposed between said reinforcing member and the upstanding wall N3 of the receptacle body. The gasket 2i] may be of soft and resilient rubber or rubber-like deformable material, preferably tubular in form as illustrated by Fig. 4. The gasket extends circumferentially of thereceptacle rim and is continuous, the groove or seat l9 likewise being continuous about the top opening of the receptacle body.

'It is important that the groove 59 be formed on a radius which is considerably greater than the radius of the gasket member when expanded as illustrated by Fig. 4. By means of this construction a perfect seal is obtained when the rim of the cover is forced into flatwise contact upon the gasket and the corresponding rim of the receptacle body, as illustrated by Fig. 3-. In forming the groove on the larger radius as stated above, ample provision is made for distortion of the gasket member 20 to a partially flattened condition, without displacement of any gasket material beyond the confines of the groove and between the contactin metallic faces of the cover rim and the receptacle body rim. The resultant seal accordingly is extremely tight and highly dependable for precluding passage of air, water, or other foreign substances through the joint at which the gasket is interposed.

In the preferred form of burial casket liner, one of the longer edges of the cover is hinged to the rim of the receptacle in such manner that the cover may be swung toward and from the closed position, and bodily removed at an intermediate position, if desired. For this purpose the device may be furnished with a quickly separable hinge connection comprising an angular tongue 32 suitably mounted in fixed relationship to the cover rim, so as to extend transversely thereof and slightly beyond the rim of the cover. The tongue is adapted to enter an elongated opening 33 formed in an upstanding hinge eye 34 which is securely fixed to the rim of the receptacle body at the location 35 (Fig. 4). The connection at 35 may be effected in any suitable manner, as by means of welds, rivets or the like. Tlie'tongue 32 may be secured to the cover rim in like manner.

As will readily be understood, two or more of the quickly separable hinge connections described above may be provided along one of the longer edges of the receptacle structure. In the event that it is necessary or desirable to disassociate the cover bodily from the receptacle, the attendant need only swing the cover to a position intermediate the fully open and the fully closed positions, whereupon the tongues 32 may be retracted from the elongated openings 33 of the hinge eyes, thereby severing the connection. The tongues also serve to limit the opening movement of the cover, so that the cover will stand erect.

To ensure permanent and lasting sealing of the cover member on the receptacle rim, it is desirable to furnish a series of fastening devices located at intervals about three sides of the cover rim. These fastening devices may be in the form of screws each having a head 36 exposed above the cover rim, and an end 31 furnished with screw threads. Intermediate the threaded end and the head, the screw is reduced in diameter to provide a smooth shank 38. The diameter of the shank prefer-ably approximates the root diameter of the threads so that the shank may not interfere with entry of the screw threads into a nut or threaded opening. The fastening screws are what may be termed captive screws, since it is impossible to disassociate them from the rim of the cover member. For this purpose, it is de sirable to furnish the reinforcing member 39 with a series of drilled or punched holes 39 each to receive a screw shank, said holes being larger in diameter than the threaded ends of the screws. Thus the screw of Fig. 3, for example, may be freely reciprocable within the hole 39, provided that its threaded end 31 is not engaged with the threaded opening 48 provided in the receptacle rim reinforcing member IT. The screw is held captive by placing a U-shaped retainer 4| directly under the head 36, and welding or otherwise securing the retainer to the rim portion of the cover, with the legs 42 of the retainer embracing the reduced shank 38. A detail view of the retainer is illustrated by Fig. 5. It will be understood that the distance between the less 42 thereof is only slightly greater than the diameter of the screw shank. With the retainer fixedly applied to the cover rim 2 I, it is possible to withdraw the screw upwardly only to an extent permitted by the shank abutment 43 when striking the legs of retainer 4|. As the head limits movement of the screw axially in theopposite direction it will be seen that the screw is kept captive with relation to the cover rim, so that under no circumstances will it become lost or misplaced, and thereby interfere with the desired rapid and orderly closing of the burial casket liner.

The heads of the several screws may be furnished with slots or other means for the reception of a simple tool to be used in tightening the screws and bringing the rim of the cover into firm fiatwise contact with the rim of the receptacle body, while at the same time compressing the gasket 29, so that when the cover is clamped to the body of the receptacle there is achieved a rigid substantially integral structure. Preferably, though not necessarily, the length of the threaded portion of the screw slightly exceeds the depth of the hole 39 in the cover rim, so that when the cover is swung downwardly into place upon the receptacle rim, the screw threads 31 and 4|] will readily engage as the screw is ro tated and advanced toward the home position. As illustrated by Fig. 1, several screws of the characters illustrated by Fig. 3 may be furnished along one of the longer rims of the casket liner, and one or more of such screws may be furnished along the shorter rim portions thereof. If the casket liner is furnished with hinges as previously explained, it will be unnecessary to furnish any screw fasteners along the hinged rim portion, as the hinges themselves will force the rims l4 and 2| into substantial and firm contact while compressing the adjacent gasket 20. In constructions which omit the hinge connections, it will be desirable of course to provide the captive screw fasteners along all the reaches of the cover rim.

Liner receptacles of the character herein disclosed may be made in various sizes and shapes for insertion into various types and styles of ornate caskets, and when a maximum of preservation is desired, the liner may be constructed of zinc or other corrosion-resisting metals or materials. The liner structure illustrated by the drawing will preferably be so placed within a casket as to dispose its quickly separable hinge connections 32-34 adjacent to the hinge of the casket proper, so that both lids may be swung to the open position when desired, disposing the lid of the liner within and substantially parallel to the lid of the casket. Upon the termination of the funeral services, both lids may be quickly swung to the closed position, the liner lid being first securely clamped by means of the screws l2, to the liner body rim for effectively sealing the liner receptacle independently of such seal as may be furnished upon the casket proper.

It is to be understood that various modifications and changes in the structural details of the device may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is: r

1. In a burial casket liner comprising a, circumferentially rimmed receptacle and a circums ferentially rimmed cover for application to the receptacle, both rims of which are apertured marginally and gas-keted against leakage, a, rim clamp comprising a, screw having a head exposed at the cover rim, a threaded end on the screw, and an intermediate shank portion reduced in diameter. to approximate the root diameter of the threaded end of the screw, cooperative threads in the aperture of the receptacle rim to receive the threaded end of the screw, the shank thereof being freely accommodated in the un threaded aperture of the cover rim, and a horseshoe-shaped retainer firmly fixed to the cover rim aboutthe shank portion of the screw to limit axial shifting of the screw through said unthreaded aperture, said retainer having a pair of r spaced arms fitting about the shank of the screw,

said arms being spaced a greater distance than the diameter of the shank but a lesser distance than the diameter of the threaded end of the screw, thereby precluding disassociation of the screw from the cover rim, the head of the screw being adapted to bear on the arms of the retainer, whereby the retainer forms a bearing for the head of the screw.

2. In a burial casket liner comprising a circumferentially rimmed receptacle and a circumferentially rimmed cover for application to the receptacle, both rims of which are apertured marginally and gasketed against leakage, a, rim clamp comprising a screw having a head exposed at the cover rim, a threaded end on the screw, and an intermediate shank portion reduced in diameter to approximate the root diameter of the threaded end of the screw, cooperative threads in the aperture of the receptacle rim to receive the threaded end of the screw, the shank thereof being freely accommodated in the unthreaded aperture of the cover rim, and a horseshoe-shaped retainer firmly fixed to the cover rim about the shank portion of the screw to limit axial shifting of the screw through said unthreaded aperture, said retainer having a pair of spaced arms fitting about the shank of the screw, said arms being spaced a greater distance than the diameter of the shank but a lesser distance than the diameter of the threaded end of the screw, thereby precluding disassociation of the screw from the cover rim, the depth of the unthreaded aperture being less than the length of the threaded portion of the screw, the head of the screw being adapted to bear on the arms of the retainer, whereby the retainer forms a bearing for the head of the screw.

3. In a clamp for attaching a flanged cover to a flanged receptacle, the receptacle flange containing a threaded opening, the cover flange containing an opening adapted for registry with the threaded opening in the receptacle flange, the cover opening being of greater diameter than the threaded opening, the combination of a clamp screw comprising a threaded portion adapted to engage the threads of the threaded opening, an

intermediate shank portion of lesser diameter than the threaded portion, and a head portion of greater diameter than the intermediate shank portion, the shank portion of the clamp screw extending through the opening in the cover flange with the head on one side of the cover fiange and the threaded portion on the other side, and a substantially flat bearing and retainer member of U- shape disposed across the opening in the cover fiange straddling the shank of the clamp screw and secured to the cover flange, the arms of said U-shaped member being disposed on opposite sides of the shank portion of the screw, the width of the space between said arms being greater than the diameter of the shank portion but less than the diameter of the threaded portion of the screw, s-aid retainer serving to hold the screw captive in the cover fiange when the cover is disengaged from the receptacle, the head of the screw being disposed to bear on the arms of said U-shaped member, whereby said U-shaped member forms a bearing for the head of the screw when the threaded portion of the screw engages the threaded opening.

BERNARD J. SLAUGHTER, JR.

RAYMOND W. BROWN.

REFERENCES CITED Number The following references are of record in the 15 u b file of this patent:

8 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Smith July 14, 1868 Sparks et a1 Mar. 16, 1886 Samson Oct. 7, 1902 Wisterman Mar. 16, 1915 Belville Mar. 3, 1925 Selah Aug. 19, 1930 Davoran Nov. 7, 1933 Strom Oct. 19, 1937 Purkiss June 2, 1942 Purkiss July 6, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Great Britain Dec. 4, 1923 

